Amid issues at Comelec, Miru Systems vows clean polls

Commission on Elections. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — Miru Systems, the company tapped by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to conduct automated polls in 2025, has assured the public that it is committed to providing clean and honest elections despite issues surrounding the poll body.

In a statement on Tuesday, Miru Systems said they are focused on delivering the best automated election system (AES) to the Philippines.

“We have always acted in good faith and have proven the quality of both the machines themselves and our capacity to deliver all requirements on time through several public demonstrations, and will continue to show transparency as we move forward with our responsibility for the upcoming election,” it added.

Miru issued the statement after Sagip party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta claimed that at least P1 billion were transferred from banks, including those based in South Korea, to 49 offshore accounts supposedly linked to a Comelec official.

Marcoleta did not say that the funds came from Miru, but he noted that Miru is a South Korean firm.

READ: P1-B moved from foreign banks to poll exec’s offshore accounts – Marcoleta 

Marcoleta did not name the poll official, but Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said in an ambush interview that he was the one being referred to by the lawmaker.

Garcia denied owning any foreign accounts or any property abroad.

INQUIRER.net contacted Garcia after Marcoleta’s briefing. Garcia then sent copies of a letter he wrote to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) dated July 8, a day before Marcoleta made his claims.

In the letter to the NBI, Garcia requested for an investigation into allegations that he has offshore accounts, which were spreading online.

READ: Garcia to NBI: Probe bribery raps, ‘it’s a demolition job vs Comelec’ 

Miru also maintained that they have been subjected to checks by Comelec and independent poll watchdogs, which have led to good reviews.

“Most recently, we have provided a comprehensive tour of our manufacturing plant to Comelec officials, election watchdogs, IT Stakeholders, and the media. This includes highly regarded groups such as PPCRV, Lente, NAMFREL, PARTICIPATE, the Philippine Computer Society, and the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas,” the company said.

“Chairman Garcia himself also noted how capable Miru systems has proven to be during this process, saying during our recent press event,” it added.

Marcoleta said there were developments in the poll body’s AES procurement when the fund transfers occurred, and most of the incidents were supposedly favorable to Miru.

Among the examples cited by Marcoleta was a money transfer allegedly done on June 22, 2023 when a certain Stephen Schultz transferred $148,000 from Standard Chartered Bank Jong Ro Main Branch in South Korea, to Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore.

It happened alongside Comelec’s declaration that the vote-counting machines (VCMs) used in the previous polls were unserviceable, according to Marcoleta.

On May 5, 2023, Comelec announced it was searching for new VCMs capable of combining the current optical mark reader (OMR) technology and direct recording electronic (DRE) or touch-screen capabilities.

READ: Search on for new vote-counting system 

Marcoleta, however, admitted that these transactions are currently being verified.

But even before Marcoleta’s allegations, several lawmakers and political parties aired concerns over Comelec’s alleged preference for Miru, which bagged the contract for Comelec’s Full Automation System with Transparency Audit/Count (Fastrac).

The deal includes the supply of 110,000 automated counting machines, election management systems, consolidation and canvassing systems, ballot printing, ballot boxes, and other peripherals.

READ: Comelec, Miru ink P17.99 B pact for automated 2025 polls

Last April 18, Aksyon Demokratiko member and former Caloocan City Rep. Edgar Erice asked the Supreme Court (SC) to stop Comelec from implementing its P17.9-billion contract with Miru.

According to Erice, the contract violates the Automated Election Law because Miru will be using a hybrid system supposedly never been tried in another country.

READ: SC asked to stop Comelec – Miru deal for 2025 polls 

Cagayan de Oro City 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez and Rizal 2nd District Rep. Emigdio Tanjuatco III also urged the Comelec to reuse the VCMs to save public funds.

READ: Comelec should reuse Smartmatic VCMs for 2025 polls, says lawmaker